When it comes to pets resembling their owners, the theory isn’t
restricted to people and their dogs.
When it comes to pets resembling their owners, the theory isn’t restricted to people and their dogs.
“People will say, ‘you know how people look like their dogs? Well, you look like your horse,’ ” laughed Jade Katen-Ynzunza as she sat perched atop her 11-year-old quarter horse, Plumb Willy.
Both have long, ebony-colored hair, and Katen-Ynzunza’s olive complexion complements Willy’s glossy dun coat.
The 14-year-old Gilroy High School freshman earned the title of queen during the California High School Rodeo Association District 4 finals April 30 at the Monterey County Sheriff’s Posse Grounds in Salinas, and will be officially crowned in a ceremony Sunday north of Morgan Hill at Coyote Ranch. She’ll go on to compete in the state finals June 13-18 at the Tri-County Fairgrounds in Bishop, vying for the title of Miss California High School Rodeo against eight other riders. With nine districts in the state of California, District 4 – Jade’s territory – covers San Benito, Santa Clara, Monterey, Santa Cruz, San Francisco, Contra Costa, Alameda and San Mateo counties.
If all goes well, the girl and her trusty steed are Wyoming-bound for nationals in July.
“He’s slobbering all over my face,” said Katen-Ynzunza, attempting to coerce her horse into standing still for pictures Tuesday afternoon on her grandmother’s 46-acre ranch on Day Road.
Here she boards Willy, who has a sweet tooth for Skittles and Scooby Snacks.
At 5 feet 5 inches tall, Jade has a petite frame and looks tiny compared to Willy, a four-legged powerhouse of solid muscle who responds to his rider with seemingly instinctive understanding.
Watching the duo circle a spacious dirt arena engulfed by open sky and rolling green hills – Jade rocking naturally in sync to Willy’s fluid, loping movements – it’s comical to think at one point the decorated competitor and avid equine enthusiast wouldn’t touch a horse with a 10-foot stick.
“I signed her up for horse camp, and she refused to ride,” remembered her mom, Suzann Ynzunza.
Inspiration from ABC’s TV series on horse racing called “Wildfire,” however, prompted the 9-year-old to tell her mom, “I want to ride like that.”
Suzann purchased 7-year-old Willy for Jade, a deal sealed when Willy “chose” them during a visit to Brooks Quarter Horses in Jamestown.
Jade’s lived in the saddle ever since, from barrel racing to goat tying – and she does it in style.
“I keep my ropes in this,” she said, grabbing a Pepto Bismol-pink box labeled “spank ‘n flank” in jewel encrusted lettering.
Placing one end of the rope in her mouth, Jade demonstrated her goat-tying skills using her mom’s forearm.
“We are working incredibly hard. She’s really driven,” said Brittany Slaton, 22, the current Miss Rodeo California from Hollister who has taken Jade under her wing.
High school rodeo is more than looking pretty on a horse, she said. Contestants are judged on modeling, a speech, impromptu question, interview, written test and horsemanship – all for a shot at scholarships, recognition and the chance to publicly represent the industry.
In Bishop, Jade and Willy will be scrutinized on reining, a form of competition exemplifying the oneness of horse and rider where judges “want you to find more of a bond with your horse,” she explained. The discipline dictates a horse should be guided willingly through a choreographed pattern of spins, circles and sudden sliding stops.
“Still no boys, thank God,” said her mom, looking on as Jade cued Willy from a brisk trot into a dead halt.
Willy’s haunches slid beneath his body, a large plume of dirt rising from the ground.
“No boys,” echoed Jade later on as she removed Willy’s tack. “I’ll have horses. No kids.”
If one thing’s for certain, her modeling ensemble on loan from Megan Ford, current District 4 queen, will turn heads.
The form-hugging buckskin dress sporting colorful embroidered flowers, rose-hued leather studded neckline, belt with bright gold buckle and matching lipstick-red boots is a showstopper.
“It’s been preserved within the heritage for so long, I enjoy wearing it,” she said. “It makes me feel like I’m part of something that’s bigger and that’s been around for a while.”
This appreciative insight speaks to Jade’s commitment in advocating her passion at the local level and beyond. If more people get involved, she believes, a rodeo resurgence in the Garlic Capital isn’t out of reach.
“I want to bring rodeo back to Gilroy,” she said. “I want it be valued very highly in the community.”
Between Christopher High School and GHS, Jade is the only student seriously competing in high school rodeo.
It’s a hefty undertaking, Slaton admits, and “a big commitment for a lot of girls.”
For Gilroy’s rodeo queen, who tries to get most of her homework done during lunch, it’s worth it.
“To be able to be an ambassador, promote rodeo, preserve Western heritage and share what I do every day with others is what drives me to want to be queen,” said Jade, who confessed she’s clumsier on the ground than in the saddle.
“He really is good for the soul,” said Suzann, smiling as she watched the pair canter around the arena.
Beneath the jewel-encrusted bridles, embroidered blankets, the stresses of competing, the adrenaline of challenge, the long days of driving back and forth from their home on the opposite side of town – is a girl who loves her horse – and vice versa.
The kinetic energy between the two is the stuff good equine stories champion.
“He has taken such good care of me. He is my best friend,” said Jade. “He would go through leaps and bounds for me.”
